Mexican Food History

This paper looks to define and explore three books which are a crux to various food histories which in the last decade has become a scholarly journey as food history is becoming increasingly studied as a scholarly endeavor by historians where previously it was not seen in such a scholarly light. The three texts which are going to be examined are: Planet Taco: A Global History of Mexican Food by Jeffery M. Pilcher, The Invention of the Restaurant: Paris and Modern Gastronomic Culture by Rebecca L. Spang, and lastly To Live and Dine in Dixie: The Evolution of Urban Food Culture in the Jim Crow South by Angela Jill Cooley. Each of these books seek to redefine how people see their perspective topics whether it be Mexican identity rooted in cuisine, the evolution of southern food in a racially divided south, or even the concept of the restaurant emerging from a revolutionary culture. These texts bring awareness to various topics which have both social, cultural, and economic stigmas associated with them.

It is a known fact that every human being communicates through language, but perhaps a little known fact that we communicate even through the food we eat. We communicate through food all the meanings that we assign and attribute to our culture, and consequently to our identity as well. Food is not only nourishment for our bodies, but a symbol of where we come from. In order to understand the basic function of food as a necessity not only for our survival, we must look to politics, power, identity, and culture.

There are many misconceptions of the Hispanic diet. Many people think that all people who speak Spanish eat tacos and enchiladas. You most likely will not find those foods in most regions other than Mexico. Central American and Mexican cuisines only use tortillas. Foods such as tamales and salsas can be found in many regions. Rice and beans are staple dishes in many Latin American cuisines, but rice, beans, salsa, and

Most spanish are catholic, they went from polytheism ( believing in more than one god) to monotheism (believes in one god). Unlike the aztecs, that believed in ( 16 ) gods, each one responsible for a different thing. They now speak spanish but Nahuatl is still considered as an important language. The mexicans use animals such as horses, cattle, sheep, and donkeys to help them with their work and to eat, the aztecs would do everything themselves and would grow their own food therefore they didn't need these animals. The aztecs diet mostly consisted of vegetables. A variety of the recipes and foods mexicans eat, are similar to food the aztecs

To emphasize on the influence of the Aztecs traditions in to Mexican culture is the gender roles. In the book, Mexico an illustrated History it explains, “Men were expected to be unflinching in the face of danger, and able to withstand pain. Women were expected to be modest and unassertive, their world restricted to the household. Children were cherished, but taught to respect discipline and the authority of elders.” The Mexican culture still follows these traditions. Just like the Aztecs, in the Mexican culture men were raise to be machos. Men are usually the head of the family and were expect to go in to the world and provide for his family. Modern day women are still changing and everyday there is more opportunities for women, but even with the new opportunities, some women still decide to take the traditional route; they get married and decide to take the role of a housewife. Modern day children are still raise with the same values, they are taught to respect their parents and the elderly. Just like the Aztecs, Mexicans take their traditions very seriously. Mexicans also take the admiration of sports from the Aztecs. The Aztec had their own version of football called Tlachi which was later updated to soccer. Aztecs did not have a religion. Their religion was based in pleasing their god and getting rewards in return for this. The Aztec thought that in order for the universe to run smooth with

"Heritage" is defined as the customs and traditions that are handed down from generation to generation of families and society. A person with Latino heritage is a descendant of a family from Mexico, Central America, or South America. Peeps who are Hispanic are from a country where Spanish is spoken. Let's check out some of their traditions.

The Mexican culture is a mixture of Spanish and Aztec roots dating back to the 19th and 20th century when Spain had rule over Mexico. Their rich heritage and inhabitance formed their culture today with pride and unbreakable traditions. Back before the Spanish had power over Mexico, it was first occupied with an enormous number of Indian groups that varied in social as well as economic systems. Mexico was shared with the Mayans, Totonac, Huastec, Otomi, Mixtecs, Zapotecas, and Tlaxcala’s, Tarascans, and Aztec tribes. Before the Spanish arrived, the Aztec tribe ruled most of Mexico. They built most of what is known as Mexico City due to a tribe prophecy that demanded the city to be established where there was an eagle with a snake in its beak resting on a cactus. That became a national symbol of Mexico and embellishes on the country’s flag

The Aztecs were a civilization of brave and strong warriors. They ruled their empire in 1350 to 1519. Tenochtitlan was the capital of their empire. Two things the Aztecs were known for were human sacrifice and agriculture. However historians should emphazise agriculture.""I think historians should emphasize Aztec agriculture because of these three reasons. One reason is their farming method called chinampas. According to Document B it states that when the Aztecs used the method of chinampas they did not get cut short of food. Second reason historians should emphasize mor aztec agriculture is because they created many popular Mexican foods of today. According to Document C it states that they created tortillas and popcorn. Laslty Aztecs agriculture

Mexican culture dates far back as the 13th century. This is when the Aztecs were prevalent in northern mexico. Aztecs were a people who were all about war and honor. They made many enemies going to war with smaller tribes and brutally killed their enemies. In the 16th century the Aztecs Empire crumbled due to the invasion led by Hernan Cortez. Disease, superior weapons, and aid of the Aztec’s enemies were all contributing factors to the Aztecs downfall. Fast forward September 16th 1810 when Mexico gained its independence from Spain Mexico's identity started to develop. Mexican culture is defined by many things, its food, its language, its clothing, its art. However, There is one aspect that defines Mexican culture and that is family life. Mexicans have a very rich family life that defines the culture. The way that family is organized and the way each member acts can be traced back to the very beginning. It's a mixture of the indigenous peoples culture as well as the Spaniards culture. The indigenous peoples pass on their ideas of honor and machismo and the Spaniards pass on their ideas of catholicism, and family value and structure. I fit into this because I grew up on these ideas and my family still practices some of these ideas today.

Many Mexican people have preserved and still do many of their ancestors’ traditions. Tradition plays a big role in my family for example: the food we eat, the music we listen to, what we dance to and what we celebrate to. I wanted a sweet sixteen but of course being Mexican my parents said no. Being in the Mexican culture tradition is that when you turn 15 you’re supposed to have a Quinceanera it symbolizes that you are no longer a kid but you are now a young women. Many people think a Quinceanera is just a party but the real tradition is to have a church mass. Since I am catholic that consists of me going to church and thanking God.

The staples of Mexican cuisine are typically corn and beans. Corn, traditionally Mexico's staple grain, is eaten fresh, on the cob, and as a component of a number of dishes. Most corn, however, is used to make masa, a dough for tamales, tortillas, gorditas, and many other corn-based foods. Squash and peppers also play important roles in Mexican cuisine.

The introduced new livestock. For example sheep,pigs,and cows. These animals brought dairy products and garlic along with many different herbs and spices. It was around this time that the Mexican people saw the vision of many other cuisines. Such as Caribbean, South American, French, West African, and Portuguese. Overall Mexican food and Tex Mex are now enjoyed nationwide.People often confuse Mexican and Tex-Mex, because it turns out while there are difference between the two there are many similarities also. For example flour tortillas are commonly used in both Mexican and Tex-Mex dishes. Another similarities is some of the dishes. For example chile con queso,or chile with cheese, is a common dish in the Mexican and Tex-Mex category. The last similarity that I’m going to talk about is While there are many similarities between mexican and tex-mex food there are many differences too. For example cheese. In tex-mex foods they use melted cheddar cheese in many dishes such as nachos and enchiladas.But, in Mexican food they rarely uses yellow cheese and they rely heavily on white cheeses. For example queso blanco, queso fresco, queso panela, etc. Another example of how Mexican and Tex-Mex food is

Tequila, Mariachi and Tacos are well known for my country, México. I was born in Puebla but since I was 6 years old I came to live to Jalisco. As a Mexican we like to describe ourselves as cheerful y nature. Our Traditions consists of a numerous festivities, a traditional background that reflects the spirituality in the population, as a result of the beliefs from the Mexicas and the Catholic’s Spanish conquistadors. Some of my favorite festivities include the Day of the Death, we celebrate the return of the dead to visit their live relatives. My family as a traditional one is warm, welcoming and hospitable, our family reunions contains a vast scope of ingredients and colors. Although, I grew up in is traditional shaped and now that I am 17

Before the show begins, everyone was sitting around waiting on someone ti give us permission to eat the snack that was prepared for this event. Once one person got up, so did everyone else. The snack that was prepared for us were Mexican food. The Mexican food that was provided for us was avocado, cheese, and much more. I didn't enjoy the food because I'm not a big fan of Mexican food. I did enjoy the lemonade and cheese. After everyone was done eating there, the show begin. At the beginning of the show, there was a speaker named Ricky. Ricky was the coach of this dance. He taught this dance team everything he knew. First, he started off by telling us where we were from, places he has been, and much more. He also talked about his dance team

Comparing Mexican food pyramid and the United States they have similar food recommendations, consuming fruit, vegetables, grains, meats, dairy and drinking water daily. The intake for the Mexican food group is the same serving size as the United States pyramid. Corn and beans are the basis of the Mexican diet is and found in almost every meal, corn, beans, and peppers are cheap and widely available. Mexicans are self-sufficient in growing and producing vegetables and fruits for their country. They eat many different kinds of tropical fruit including papaya, lychee, pineapple, prickly pear, mango and star fruit. Mexicans eat a well-balanced meal based on their food pyramid. The Mexico pyramid is designed as a round plate divided into 3 sections.